254 MANUAL OF VEGETABLE-GARDEN INSECTS 



South Africa, Madagascar, Mauritius, the Oriental region and 

 Australia. 



The moth has an expanse of li to li inches. The front wing 

 has the outer margin angled at the middle. The basal half is 

 yellow usually shaded with light brown and the outer half is 

 light pinkish brown often shaded w^ith yellow. The hind wings 

 are pale yellow shading into ocher yellow towards the outer 

 border. The moth deposits her pale green, globular, slightly 

 flattened eggs singly on both the upper and under side of the 

 leaves. The egg is about -^ inch in diameter and marked with 

 a series of ridges radiating from the apex. The eggs hatch in 

 about four days and the young caterpillar, after eating its 

 egg-shell, begins feeding on the leaf in which it eats out small 

 holes. The larger larvae eat out irregular areas from the 

 side of the leaf and when abundant often defoliate the plant. 

 The caterpillar passes through seven stages in the course of its 

 development and reaches maturity in about twenty-four days 

 in warm weather. It is then about If inches in length, pale 

 pea-green in color, inconspicuously marked with five narrow 

 broken yellow lines above and with a broader yellowish white 

 stripe on each side. While young the caterpillars suspend them- 

 selves by a thread when disturbed and are able to climb back 

 to the plant when the danger has passed. They walk with a 

 peculiar looping motion owing to the fact that only four pairs 

 of prolegs are present on the abdominal segments. When full- 

 grown the caterpillar transforms in a folded leaf into a blackish 

 brown pupa about f inch in length and in five days to two 

 weeks depending on the season the moths emerge. In Florida 

 the life cycle requires nearly five weeks. 



The caterpillars can be killed by spraying with arsenate of 

 lead (paste), 2 pounds in 50 gallons of water. Recent experi- 

 ments also indicate that effective work against the caterpillars 

 can be done by spraying with '' Black Leaf 40 " tobacco ex- 

 tract, 10 ounces in 100 gallons of water in which 5 or 6 pounds 

 of soap have been dissolved. 



